How to shop more sustainably this Christmas – 8 simple steps for a more sustainable Christmas with Aldi

With Christmas just around the corner, Aldi has some top tips on how to shop more sustainably during the festive period. From reducing plastic waste to supporting Irish producers, there’s plenty of ways to help limit the impact of your Christmas shopping on the environment this year.

 Shop seasonal and buy Irish

To be kinder to the environment this Christmas, shop with the winter season in mind. Fruit and vegetables can often be cheaper – and tastier – if they’re in season in Ireland, and shopping seasonal will help cut food miles too. Keep your eyes peeled for Aldi’s weekly Super 6 offers, as these feature a range of fruit and veg that are in season at unbeatable prices.

Another way is to show your support for Irish farmers by enjoying an Irish-grown Christmas dinner this year. This is easier than ever at Aldi with everything from Christmas turkeys to award-winning festive produce coming from Bord Bia quality approved farms. Aldi continues to work closely with its dedicated suppliers, spending €250 million on Irish food and drink during this busy festive season and over €1 billion this year.

Picking up plant based products

There are many ways to be more sustainable with your diet this Christmas, including enjoying plant-based meals which are considered positive for the environment. If you are trying to choose more plant-based options this festive season, Aldi has a large variety of vegan and vegetarian products, including its Plant Menu range. Aldi shoppers can pick up a nut roast or even a vegan turkey as an alternative centrepiece, or indulge in Aldi’s vegan Christmas hamper which is packed full of tasty treats.

Indulge in Fairtrade chocolate

The Fairtrade logo is recognised all around the world, advocating for better prices, improved working conditions, local sustainability and fair terms for farmers and workers in developing countries. By choosing products that carry the Fairtrade mark this Christmas, such as Aldi’s Specially Selected Exquisite Artisan Collection and Specially Selected Belgian chocolate marshmallows among others, you’re helping to invest in local communities while also indulging in your favourite Christmas treats.

Choose more sustainable materials

Christmas presents, especially for kids, can be packed with too much plastic. Choose gifts made with more sustainable materials such as FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) wood, which certifies forests all over the world to ensure they meet the highest environmental and social standards. Aldi offers a FSC-certified wooden advent calendar, which can be enjoyed and reused for many years to come. Aldi continues to cut back on plastic this Christmas as part of its plan for all product packaging to be reusable, recyclable or compostable by the end of 2022. Aldi also aims to reduce plastic packaging by 50% by the end of 2025.

 Choose sustainable Christmas cards

While sending an e-card is the most environmentally-friendly way of sending festive wishes to friends and family, many of us like to keep up the tradition of sending Christmas cards in the post. Try to choose cards that come without plastic packaging and check that the cards themselves are recyclable too. Did you know Aldi’s entire Christmas card range is plastic-free, FSC-certified, recyclable and glitter-free? As well as its greetings cards, Aldi has removed all glitter from its Christmas wrapping paper, gift-bags and gift-wrap accessories, without taking the sparkle out of the festive season. To date, Aldi has removed more than 2,150 tonnes of virgin plastic from its store network in addition to replacing almost 930 tonnes of non-recyclable material with recyclable alternatives.

Be smart about crackers

Millions of plastic toys and puzzles in crackers go to waste each year, often being discarded within minutes of being opened. To avoid this, look out for more sustainable options this festive season. Aldi’s Christmas crackers offer plastic-free toy alternatives made from metal, wood and card and are sold in plastic-free packaging, making all of Aldi’s Christmas crackers 100% recyclable.

Wrap and recycle

Wrapping paper, gift bags, tags, ribbon and other decorations can also result in huge plastic waste. Look out for options that can be recycled after use. If you receive presents in gift bags, fold them away to reuse again next year – you’ll be saving money as well as helping the environment.

Plan ahead to reduce surplus food

It’s easy to overestimate the amount of food we need for the big day, but to avoid the trap it’s a good idea to plan ahead and gather some tasty recipes to use up any leftovers. Turkey curry is an obvious one, but there’s so many more ways to use up surplus food. Check out Aldi’s festive recipe ideas at www.aldi.ie/recipes. Aldi works closely with its charity partner FoodCloud to reduce surplus food across its store network, having donated €2.9 million worth of meals to date.

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